Be Like Amazon

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To so many businesses out there, and especially to those on the web, I'd like to shout - Be Like Amazon! Here's why Amazon is so great:

• They provide recommendations from people who actually use the product. So, when I was trying to find out which music CD to buy for my then-13-year-old daughter, I was able to choose from a recommended list written by a 13-year-old girl. This was especially helpful to me, because I had no idea who the bands and singers were.


• They remember what I've purchased, and can show it to me any time.


• They remember what I've searched for in the past and can show it to me any time.
• They recommend new products to me based on what I've purchased in the past, and what others with my interests have bought.


• They have such a variety of items available for sale.


• They make checkout easy and painless.


• They store multiple billing and shipping addresses for me, and make it easy for me to choose or change one of them any time.

The only thing I'm not wild about is the return policy. If I remember correctly, all items must be returned within 30 days or they're not returnable. This has only affected me once; I purchased a Kodak memory card for my daughter's Kodak digital camera, and put it away for her birthday. By the time she opened it, and discovered that the two items were not compatible (go figure?), it was too late to return the memory card. Anyone out there need a Kodak digital camera memory card?

Other than this little snafu, Amazon is just wonderful. Be like Amazon.
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